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Hi Friends!

It’s been a bit, but I’m back! Since my last post, Charleston has finally decided to accept that it is in fact, Fall. I thought a nice, spiced muffin would be perfect to compliment this newfound sweater weather. With my Pinterest crawling with pumpkin and apple spiced muffins, I knew I wanted to try something a wee bit different. Then I had an epiphany to make one of my favorite desserts, Hummingbird Cake, into a healthier version fit for breakfast. I present Hummingbird Muffins.

Hummingbird what?

First, let me back up a bit to give a little background on something called Hummingbird Cake. In 2012, being a new Charlestonian, I quickly stumbled upon the love affair that Charleston has with this spiced cake. I had never heard of such a thing, but it is now one of my favorite desserts. I promise the cake brings no harm to hummingbirds, but it is deliciously sweetened with pineapple and bananas and spiced with a nice touch of cinnamon topped with tangy cream cheese icing- which I imagine hummingbirds might like? My understanding is that the cake is specifically a southern treat, having first appeared in Southern Living magazine in the 1970s. I don’t know that it originated in Charleston, but we sure do love it. Many restaurants around town take pride in offering the cake on their dessert menu.

I’ve made Hummingbird Cake several times, especially since it’s a husband favorite around here, but I wanted a lighter, healthier version that could be easily popped in the oven or microwave in the morning for warm and toasty breakfast.

Then the Hummingbird Muffin was born.

It’s got all the usual components like bananas, crushed pineapple, cinnamon along with some more unconventional (but healthier) ones such as whole wheat flour and Greek yogurt. Either way my Hummingbird Cake connoisseur of a husband gave them two thumbs up.

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There’s a local restaurant near me called Angel Oak that is off the beaten path and is super quaint. It’s not much to look at on the outside, but they make some mighty fine food and has a cozy interior atmosphere. One of their signature lunch dishes is bang bang shrimp buns. Theses doughy, steamed buns are topped with fried shrimp, pickled onions, and a bang bang sauce. Little did I know when I first ate this zesty little dish that apparently bang bang sauce is a thing (as in 4.88 million hits if you google it-thing). I believe the original sauce came from Bonefish Grill and has just grown in popularity over the years. Obviously, this dish is super rich between the frying and the creamy dressing. However, one of my favorite things to do is re-creating restaurant meals that are indulgent into lighter, healthier versions that are easily made at home. Challenge accepted.

First, the shrimp.

My favorite way to lighten up fried foods is by oven frying and using cornflakes cereal as my breading. I think most people know about using cornflakes to bread foods for a super crunchy crust without frying. I’ve used this method for all sorts of protein including chicken, fish, pork, and shrimp. It’s super versatile, easy and slashes a good bit of fat and calories from a meal. The only fat I use is from cooking spray. Rather than buying a bottle of a commercial cooking spray. I like to use a Misto – it’s a pump spray bottle where you can add your own oil of your choosing – olive, avocado, grapeseed, whatever you desire! It’s reusable and refillable, so you can save quite a few aluminum cans from the landfill. I use it all the time for perfect portion control of oils.

I “oven fried” these shrimp on a silicone baking mat – which prevents sticking without additional oil. I very much recommend using a silicone baking mat – such as a Silpat. I received one as a gift one year for Christmas, and it’s a game changer. If mine broke or was damaged, I would not hesitate in buying a new one ASAP. Nothing will stick to this thing – it eliminates the need for additional cooking spray or oil and makes clean up a cinch.

Next, the sauce.

The bang bang sauce is very simple – mayo, sriracha, and sweet Thai sauce. I kept the lighten up version just as healthy – I swapped light mayo for the regular mayo. Kind of a no-brainer, and if you’re not a huge fan of light mayo chances are you won’t notice as much as the sriracha and Thai sauce make up most of the flavor.

On to the pickled onions.

Okay, there is nothing wrong with the pickled onions, but I think there needs to be more vegetables. For this recipe, I chose broccoli slaw mix. I even threw in some thinly sliced bell peppers, but you could use any thinly sliced vegetables – red onions, carrots, cabbage, whatever strikes your fancy. The bottom line here though is eat more vegetables. Never a bad idea! The vegetables are “quick pickled” with some apple cider vinegar, lime juice, and a little bit of salt. It’s the perfect contrast to the creamy sauce and crunchy shrimp.

Lastly, the the buns.

The tortillas aren’t necessarily healthier than the steamed buns, but they are easier to find. This is the part where you choose what you like best. My local Asian market across town stocks the buns in the freezer section and they’re super easy to prepare, but the grocery store just up the street has tortillas. I chose the one that required less driving. 🙂

Place slaw mixture and additional vegetables (if using) in a bowl. In a separate small bowl, whisk together lime juice, apple cider vinegar, salt, honey, and 2 tbsp. of cilantro. Pour vinegar mixture over vegetables and toss. Set aside.

Working in batches, dip shrimp in the flour, then the egg, then the crushed cornflakes, coating the shrimp all over. Place shrimp on the sheet pan, evenly spaced apart.

Once all shrimp are placed on sheet pan, spray shrimp with cooking spray (or Misto), place pan in oven and bake for 5 minutes. Remove from oven, flip shrimp, spray with cooking spray (or Misto), and place back in oven for 5 minutes or until shrimp are opaque when pierced with a knife. Remove from oven.

While shrimp are in oven, mix together mayo, Thai sauce, and sriracha in a small bowl for the bang bang sauce.

Assemble tacos by layering warm tortilla shell with slaw, then crispy shrimp, followed by a drizzle of the bang bang sauce. Serve extra slaw on the side. Serve immediately.

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I can’t wait for you to try these grilled pineapple and jerk pork bowls with kale and avocado. These bowls are loaded with nutrients – kale (rich in vitamin K), sweet potatoes (rich in vitamin A), avocado (which aids in absorption of said vitamins), and pineapple (rich in vitamin C). But, these bowls have just as much flavor as they do good nutrition. Caramelized, tart, spicy, and savory – lots of flavor to love.

Let’s start with some pineapple and kale.

By grilling the pineapple, the natural sugars caramelized into melt in your mouth sweetness. By using some of the contrasting tart pineapple juice in the dressing, you can help tenderize the fibers in the kale. Pineapple contains a natural tenderizing enzyme called bromelain that breaks down tough proteins. This is exactly why if you use pineapple juice in gelatin, it won’t set. The protein isn’t able to form strong bonds to congeal. Pineapple juice makes a great meat tenderizer. It was perfect to help tenderize the super fibrous kale greens. Raw kale is so chewy and fiber rich, but with a touch of pineapple juice the fibers break down if it has been cooked. Tenderizing the raw kale makes the texture much more palatable. You can marinate tough greens like kale over night in this pineapple dressing, which turns into perfectly tender greens the next day.

On to the sweet potatoes and pork!

Slathering the sweet potatoes and pork tenderloin with a homemade blend of Jamaican jerk seasoning adds a slight sweetness and a mild warming spice. For maximum flavor, let the spice blend marinate on the pork for at least 20-30 minutes before grilling. I also recommend butterflying the pork tenderloin. Butterflying is a simple way to cut the meat to allow the meat to cook faster and more evenly. Put simply, you cut through the middle (but not all the way through the meat) so that you can open the meat like a book. You can find a great tutorial here.

Whisk together pineapple juice, honey, oil, and pinch of salt together in a large bowl. Add in chopped kale and toss until evenly and well coated. Set aside.

Mix the allspice, cinnamon, garlic powder, brown sugar, cayenne pepper, and salt into a small bowl.

Rub half the seasoning mixture on the pork. Place on grill and allow to sear 7-10 minutes and flip. Grill pork loin an additional 7 minutes or until internal temperature reaches 145 degrees. Remove from grill and allow to rest.

Place pineapple slices on grill and grill for about 3 minutes per side or until marks appear. Remove and set aside.

Meanwhile, use the other half of the seasoning blend to season the sweet potatoes and place on a greased baking sheet. Place in oven for about 20-25 minutes or until sweet potatoes are golden and are easily pierced with a fork.

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I’m such a sucker for spinach and artichoke dip.

Creamy, cheesy, I mean what’s not to like? Also, I have a confession. There was a time that I did not like vegetables. What?! A dietitian that didn’t always love vegetables? Yes, it’s true. It’s not so much that I didn’t like vegetables, I just didn’t know I would like them. I wasn’t a very adventurous eater until I was in my late teens. However, one of the ways that I began to become a more adventurous was to combine new foods with foods and flavors that I knew that I loved. Slowly over time, I developed a palate for new foods. This extended beyond vegetables, but I did mostly have an aversion to vegetables.

It’s all about balance!

Back then, a cheesy, creamy dip was a perfect vehicle for vegetables. Today, I would still stand by they are a perfect vehicle for vegetables. 🙂 Nowadays, I do prefer to balance the nutrients a bit. I figured this bean burger would be a perfect way to do so by bumping up the fiber with the beans and decreasing the fat and overall calories by using a light cream cheese as a binder. The white beans are perfect as they will take on any flavors and typically result in being extra creamy when mashed or ground up.

Unlike my half bean/half beef umami bomb burger, I went fully vegetarian with this burger, and it’s just as good. (Tip: just like my umami bomb burger, I would recommend searing the burgers in a pan over using a grill.)

Maximize those toppings!

The toppings are another great opportunity to add in extra vegetables. I used more spinach and some tomatoes but go with what you love. Some red onion or pickles might be a nice touch as well. I also upped the creamy factor and threw in a small amount of Parmesan cheese with some light mayo for some extra flavor and texture.

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Hey Friends!

Who doesn’t love a good summer makeover? I’m not talking about one of those bikini body makeovers. I’m talking about taking a sad, old (but delicious) summer dish and transforming it into something new, exciting, fresh, and healthier. Enter potato salad. Yeah, that plain looking, amorphous blob of potatoes topped with a mayo or vinegar dressing (depending on which you prefer). In my new and improved version, I combined using both a vinegar and a mayo dressing. This is sure to please just about anyone.

Introducing the new and improved potato salad – ta-da!

First, let’s talk about how I made it a little healthier by making the nutritional content a little more balanced. Potatoes get a bad rap for being high in calories and carbohydrates (carbs). I love me some carbs, but moderation is certainly key. Carbs that are high in fiber like potatoes do give a nice sustained energy boost, but by balancing the potatoes with a lower carb vegetable like zucchini it allows me to decrease the amount of potatoes (and thus calories) while still adding in nutrients like vitamin C.

Let’s get serious about the flavor.

Second, you don’t need a ton of mayo to make this dish shine. I found more flavor came from marinating the potatoes and zucchini in a mustard/vinegar mixture before grilling the vegetables on skewers. I seem to really love grilling this time of year! 🙂 After grilling, I topped the veggies with a drizzle of mayo and green onions – it was the perfect finish to seal in that potato salad flavor that everyone will love. Additionally, you can chop up some hard boiled egg to sprinkle on at the end as well. Everyone has a different way to make their potato salad, so feel free to top with your favorite potato salad mix-ins.

If using wooden skewers, soak skewers in water for at least 15-30 minutes.

Boil potatoes in pot of water for 10-15 minutes or until they can easily be pierced by fork but not mushy. Meanwhile, whisk vinegar, celery salt, honey, dried dill, and mustard together in a bowl. While whisking, slowly add olive oil. Set aside.

Place softened potatoes and raw zucchini cubes in shallow pan or large resealable bag and add vinaigrette mixture on top. Mix together and allow to marinate at least 15 minutes in refrigerator. Meanwhile, preheat grill to 350ºF or grill pan over stovetop to medium-high heat.

Thread vegetables onto wooden or metal skewers, alternating between potato and zucchini slices. Grill each skewer for about 2-3 minutes on each side or until dark grill marks appear. Place on serving dish and set aside.